IRD status, checked 8 October 2026: Retriever software approval is pending. A PAN, VAT line or invoice number does not make its output an IRD-approved electronic bill. Use an enlisted billing system with your required business permission for legal e-billing. Retriever’s IRD connection is Off/Test only. Read the requirements and where Retriever fits.
IRD अवस्था: रिट्रिभरको स्वीकृति अझै प्राप्त भएको छैन। PAN, VAT वा बिल नम्बर छापिँदैमा स्वीकृत विद्युतीय बीजक हुँदैन। कानूनी विद्युतीय बिलिङका लागि सूचीकृत प्रणाली र व्यवसायको अनुमति प्रयोग गर्नुहोस्। रिट्रिभरको IRD सुविधा Off/Test मा मात्र छ।
The demo in the New Road shop lasts twenty minutes and the quote arrives with three lines: the licence, the annual maintenance, and the training day. The machine is fine. The question the owner takes home is different: how many separate systems is this counter going to need, and how many renewals will chase it?
Billing software in Nepal is usually sold that way, as its own product beside the shop rather than part of it. Before comparing prices, it is worth writing down what the counter actually has to do.
The seven jobs of a counter
Ring a sale fast. A queue forgives nothing. The till has to find the product quicker than a person can, by a tap, by a USB barcode gun, or by the phone's own camera.
Hold a bill. Somebody always steps out to the ATM mid-sale. A held bill waits without blocking the queue.
Take the money the way it comes. Cash with the change worked out, eSewa or Khalti by QR, and a card left to the bank machine beside the drawer.
Issue the correct document. A counter needs readable records and the billing arrangement required for the business. For electronic tax bills, use enlisted software with the required business permission. Retriever's receipt and management output is not proof of an approved electronic bill while its approval is pending.
Close the day. Count the drawer against what the till already knows, and be told the difference by name. On Retriever this is about two minutes.
Count the stock down. A sale should take one off the shelf by itself, and the shop page should stop selling what the counter just sold out.
Keep the regulars' book. Udharo is how half the country's counters run. A credit line that follows the customer, not the page it was written on.
What it usually costs, and what it costs here
Standalone POS packages are quoted per counter, per year, with maintenance on top, and the khata and the online shop are somebody else's products again. Use your own quotes here; they vary too much for a round number to be honest.
On Retriever the counter is not a separate product, and the counter itself is on the Free plan. The till, stock, bills and receipts with your PAN or VAT number, customers, returns, the khata, expenses and the sales summaries all come with Free, at NPR 0, for the owner working the counter alone. Free holds 15 products, drafts included, so it suits a small menu or a shop trying the till before moving its whole catalogue.
Most real counters outgrow that in one of three ways, and that is where Plus comes in, at NPR 999 a month or NPR 9,999 a year. Plus holds 500 products, adds three staff who sign in to the till with their own PIN, and adds suppliers, payroll and payslips, IRD reports, loyalty and promo codes. It also lets customers order from your shop page, for pickup or delivery.
Pro, at NPR 2,999 a month or NPR 29,999 a year, is not a counter plan. It adds unlimited products, staff permissions, full analytics and the online side of the shop. A counter that only needs to ring, bill and close does not need it.
| Plan | Monthly | Yearly | What the counter gets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | NPR 0 | NPR 0 | Till, bills, stock, khata, day close; owner only; 15 products |
| Plus | NPR 999 | NPR 9,999 | Three staff by PIN, 500 products, payroll, IRD reports |
| Pro | NPR 2,999 | NPR 29,999 | Unlimited products, staff permissions, full analytics |
No plan takes a commission, and nothing auto-renews. Every new shop gets 7 days of Pro, then moves to Free unless you choose a plan; nothing is deleted when it does. The pricing page always carries the current figure.
Two details matter more at a real counter than on any brochure. The till keeps selling when the wifi dies: sales queue on the device and replay when the connection returns, without ringing anything twice. And the counter is honest about haggling, because that is how a counter works here: a discount is typed in the open and shown on the bill, not hidden in a rounded total.
The trade-offs, told straight
Free is one person and 15 products. The day a second person works the till, or the catalogue passes fifteen, the counter needs Plus. If you want to choose exactly what each cashier can see and change, that is Pro. The hardware is a phone or tablet you already own: get the Retriever app from the App Store or Google Play, or open it in the browser. A printer is optional rather than assumed: every sale has a digital receipt the counter can show on screen, and the customer keeps a copy in their email and in their account. The camera reads barcodes on Android phones today and is newest on iPhone, so if yours misbehaves, a USB gun always works. Retriever exports management records, but does not file your VAT return or currently replace an approved electronic tax-billing system. Keep that billing arrangement and reconcile it with your accountant.
If the seven jobs above look like your counter, walk through the demo shops, then open your own; the till stays with you on Free after the first 7 days. Bring your old quote along and cross the lines off one by one.